Involuntary culling (IC) is where a cow is disposed of due to injury, poor health or infertility. The main reasons for IC are infertility, mastitis and lameness. These reasons have differing age profiles in when they affect cows, cost variable amounts to treat and have an effect on the value of the cow at market. They also reduce cow welfare in different ways. These factors influence the econom...

Weaning of dairy calves is an early life husbandry management practice which involves the changeover from a liquid to a solid feed based diet. The objectives of the study were to use RNA-seq technology to examine the effect of (i) breed and (ii) gradual weaning, on the whole blood mRNA transcriptome of artificially reared Holstein-Friesian and Jersey calves. The calves were gradually weaned ove...

High consumption of soft drinks has been associated with lower intakes of milk and calcium-rich foods and higher body mass index (BMI). This study aimed to explore the pattern of beverage intake among Kuwaiti high-school students. A questionnaire on knowledge, attitudes and practices concerning beverages and milk and dairy products intake was completed by 190 Kuwaiti students aged 16-18 years a...

In many European countries, milk production per cow has more than doubled in the last 40 years. The increase in production has been accompanied by declining ability to reproduce, increasing incidence of health problems, and declining longevity in modern dairy cows. Genetic selection for increased milk yield increasingly is viewed as increasing profit at the expense of reducing animal welfare. T...

The aim of this was to find the intestinal histological alterations in chickens under the influence of threonine (Thr) and vitamin A treatment. A total 60 one day old birds were allotted to three treatments. Each treatment was further divided into four replicates of ten chickens each. They were fed 0.80% Thr and 1500 IU/kg vitamin A (control; NRC 1994 recommendation; T1), 0.87% Thr and 6250 IU/...

The main impetus for 'modern' intensive animal production occurred after the Second World War, when Western governments developed policies to increase the availability of cheap, safe food for their populations. Livestock benefit under intensive husbandry by protection from environmental extremes and predators, and better nutritional and health management. Nevertheless, there are costs to the an...

BACKGROUND Many human infections are transmitted through contact with animals (zoonoses), including household pets. Despite this concern, there is limited knowledge of the public's pet husbandry and infection control practices. The objective of this study was to characterize zoonotic disease related-husbandry and infection preventive practices in pet-owning households in Ontario, Canada. METH...

Working animals, mainly equids, camelids and bovids, are draught animals that perform transport and traction activities. In developed countries technological development has resulted in animal power being minimised, however, in developing countries most agricultural operations are still being conducted by animals, and animal welfare is a major concern. Inadequate knowledge and inappropriate att...

Urban livestock keeping in developing cities have an important role in food security and livelihoods but can also pose a significant threat to the environment and health of urban dwellers. The aim of this study was to identify the different livestock systems in Nairobi, their supply chains, and their management and food safety risks. Seven focus group discussions with livestock production offic...

BACKGROUND The 12-month Healthy Foods North intervention program was developed to improve diet among Inuit and Inuvialuit living in Arctic Canada and assess the impact of the intervention established for the communities. METHODS A quasi-experimental study randomly selected men and women (≥19 years of age) in six remote communities in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. Validated quantitati...